


Nice and Easy

by KhAeL



Category: Castlevania, Castlevania (Cartoon), 悪魔城ドラキュラ | Castlevania Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Modern Era, Platonic Relationships, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:00:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23428858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KhAeL/pseuds/KhAeL
Summary: Adrian didn't think much about his situation. His patients trickled in less hesitantly now and Trevor and Sypha were back in town. He wasn't sure if it was truly for good, knowing Sypha, but they would both be here for some time, at least while Sypha still had classes. He was content and it was selfish of him to ask for more. It was already more than he deserved, after all. [Modern!AU]
Relationships: Alucard | Adrian Tepes | Arikado Genya & Original Character(s), Alucard | Adrian Tepes | Arikado Genya/Original Character(s), Alucard | Adrian Tepes | Arikado Genya/Original Female Character(s), Alucard | Adrian Tepes | Arikado Genya/Trevor Belmont/Sypha Belnades
Comments: 4
Kudos: 7





	1. Sucker Punch

It was closed. Trevor could taste the bile at the base of his throat as he did his best to stand upright in front of the convenience store. The yellow light from the street lamp’s fluorescent didn’t do him any favors as he squinted at the store hours, eyes almost crossing. 

_'Shit.'_ He wanted a Twinkie or a bottle of water, at least, and this was the nearest convenience store from what he could remember. He didn’t feel like sobering up yet but the bartender kicked him out, said he should stop coming so often and go home. Trevor huffed at the thought.

Jacques was the bartender at the pub that he frequented. Nice guy, probably in his late 50’s. His daughter goes to the same college Sypha does though he’s never met her. He’s done Trevor a few favors and vice-versa and they were on relatively good terms. Jacques just has the habit of poking his nose into his patrons’ business; like Trevor’s drinking habits. 

“Tch.” Trevor spat on the pavement as he shuffled his feet and rubbed his cold hands together before shoving them into his pockets. He didn’t think it would be this cold tonight, _‘Forgot my jacket too.’_

Taking one last look at the storefront he grunts and starts trudging northward. “Stupid Jacque-ass,” He grumbled immaturely before languidly smiling to himself. “Pfft. Jacque-ass. Good one, Trevor.” 

He could already hear a _“God, you still think you’re funny.”_ from an irritating weasel dick that soured his mood as quickly as his humor came. Finding a dry, yellow leaf by the gutter, Trevor drunkenly walked over to it and stomped on it. Twice, for good measure.

“Ey now, don’t be rude,” Trevor heard a voice say distantly in one of the alleyways he walked past. “It’s cold out, wouldn’t you want some company?”

Trevor walked a few steps back, not forgetting to twist his foot one more time to make sure the poor leaf turned into dust on the pavement before leaving it. 

“It’ll be fun, I promise,” the voice said.

Trevor pressed his back against a large garbage bin, cursing the smell, while inching closer to the sound and deeper into the alley.

He heard shuffling and a sharp breath. _'A woman,'_ he guessed, making a fist as his eyes hardened. Trevor would have walked away had something like this happen two years ago but he’s a changed man now. Sure, he still gets piss drunk, starts bar fights for the heck of it and is also broke - but he’s a changed man now, dammit!

“Don’t touch me,” he heard the woman snarl, making him smirk. _'_ _Girl’s got spunk.'_

Trevor stood, letting out a huff, and stepped into the dim light of the alleyway while appraising his enemy. There were two men, one obviously quieter than the other but no less lecherous, and a woman. She looked frail, almost sickly, with the back alley lighting not doing her any favors. He almost felt sorry for her but seeing her eyes made him grin. She looked royally pissed.

The talkative one looked over his shoulder when he noticed the woman’s eyes focus on something behind him, “Who the fuck are you?”

“Just a sad old drunk looking for some company tonight,” Trevor said while winking at the girl. “That’s a pretty little thing you got there. Mind sharing?”

“Fuck off, cunt. Come any closer and you'll lose an eye,” the man said turning around and taking out a switchblade from his coat pocket.

Trevor’s eyes narrowed. The odds didn’t look very good for him. The girl was cornered against the back wall while the quiet one gripped her wrist tightly. If all he had to worry about was himself then he’d be less cautious but seeing that the loud one had a switchblade, what were the chances of the other one having one too?

Seeing the distance between him and the quiet one and the girl with the loud one in between, Trevor’s odds _definitely_ didn’t look very good for him. Maybe he should have thought this through a bit more. _`Too late for that now,`_ he thought grimly.

The loud one took a step forward, then two. Instinctively, Trevor stepped back once, twice.

“What’s wrong, pretty boy? I thought you wanted to share,” the loud one taunted, “Come get your slice.”

And just as the loud one was about to take a swipe at him, both of them heard a strangled, “ _Gah_!”

The girl had used the weight of the quiet one against him and pulled him close enough for her to knee him in the groin. Trevor didn't need much prompting and charged at the loud one while he was distracted and pinned him to the ground, disarming him. Straddling the man, Trevor started raining punches on him as he tried covering his face with his arms. "Fat - _guh_ \- Fucking - _gah_ \- son of - _ugh_ \- a bitch!"

Trevor spared the girl a look and was surprised to see her holding up well on her own. She had tucked a set of keys in between her knuckles and used them to help her damage the quiet one by punching him in between the eyes and it looked like it _hurt_. " _Ahhh!_ " the quiet one screamed. While distracted, Trevor saw the girl duck past her assailant and bolt for the discarded switchblade. _`She thinks fast,`_ Trevor thought as he focused on keeping his weight - and fists - on the loud one making sure he didn't get a chance to get up.

He saw the girl make it to the switchblade but was yanked backwards from her hair by the quiet one. "I'm gonna kill you!" he finally said with a bloodied eye. As he was about to reach for her with his other hand, the girl resisted his yank with a pained scream and managed to turn around just in time to stick the blade through the quiet one's palm before bolting the way Trevor came as the man held his pierced appendage in a silent scream.

Trevor whistled low and punched the loud one under him one last time before quickly getting up and following after her.

"Hey," Trevor panted as he caught up to her. She looked shaken but not too much, Trevor first noted. She had wavy black hair and fair skin. A bit pale but not as pale as someone he knows. Her eyes were blue... but also green? Trevor never really had a vast vocabulary on colors. Green? Bluegreen?

"Hey," she gasped back, still running. "Thanks for saving my ass back there."

Trevor chuckled, "You handled yourself pretty well, I doubt you needed any saving." He nudged her to go through another side road hoping that their potential pursuers would lose them eventually if they took enough turns. He was thankful she understood and changed direction along with him.

The girl let out a single laugh, grinning at him. "I don't think I would've been able to take on both of them at once. You were a damn good distraction, so thanks."

They slowed down after the fourth corner they turned. Trevor guessed they were at a safe enough distance from those fools and besides, he doubted either of them could have followed them after what happened.

"You think we lost them?" the girl panted, hands on her knees while she took a moment to catch her breath.

Trevor huffed, "Yeah. The damage we did should keep them busy." He looked at her and smirked, "And, well, you did stick a knife through the fucker's hand."

Laughing lightly, she nodded. "Right."

It was quiet for a while as they both took the time to even out their breathing. Trevor almost forgot it was freezing. The same yellow lights from the street lamps lit up a patch of road every meter or so but the city's urban planning left much to be desired. They weren't in the richest part of town, but still. Trevor frowned and looked down at the girl again. She wasn't much shorter than him, maybe an inch or two taller than Sypha. Without the pissed off look in her eyes, she looks even more tired than when he first saw her. He watched her as she wearily took off the beanie she wore through this whole ordeal; he was surprised it hadn't fallen off.

"Will you be alright?" Trevor grunted as he pushed himself off the side of the building he was leaning on.

She sighed but smiled at him, "Yeah. My place isn't far from here, thankfully. What about you?"

"Meh. I can take care of myself." Trevor shrugged offhandedly. In truth, his place was all the way across town at The Belmont Archive. He saved up enough to clean up half of the place and had a room renovated in one of the floors last year and honestly that was one of his biggest life achievements as an adult so far.

He noticed that she looked at him skeptically but chose to not comment on it. She stood up straight, fixing her hair, and smiled at him. "Thanks for the help, stranger," she said, "Hope saving dames in distress in dark alleyways isn't a strange past time of yours."

Trevor grunted watching her walk off. He stood there for a while watching her silhouette disappear into another corner. Admittedly, he was still on edge and made sure there weren't any dubious sounds of struggle or of heavy footsteps from the two thugs earlier. Only when his instincts told him that danger wasn't imminent, he relaxed.

Incidents of petty theft, robbery, and harassment weren't uncommon in this side of town and that's probably because most of the poor live in this district. He sighed; this obviously wasn't the girl's first encounter with thugs based on how quickly she moved. _`She had a sick left hook, too. For a girl.`_

Grumbling, nursing a newly forming headache, and not willing to let any more of other people's woes get to him, Trevor ultimately and begrudgingly, he might add, admitted to himself that he'll have to bunk at a friend's place tonight. And with one friend staying at the university dormitory, he was left with only one other option. _`He better still be up this late.`_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have joined the bandwagon. Planning to make each chapter stand on its own and not really stick to a plot. Just felt like having a Mondern!AU outlet for my favorite trio plus an OC that I like to add into my stories. Have any prompts you want me to work on? Send your suggestions over as a private message or comment. Would be happy to talk to you about them.


	2. God Save The Queen

He shouldn’t have given them the keys to his clinic. Neither of them! Adrian’s eye twitched as he gripped the divider that separated the common area of his small family clinic from the sickbeds. Adrian normally starts his day just as dawn breaks. He would wake up, brush his teeth, have a quiet morning with a cup of coffee and homemade oats, and then prepare to head downstairs to set up his clinic for the day. As calm as the day started, he didn't expect it to be so eventful so soon.

Sprawled on top of one of his sickbeds was Trevor Belmont, in all of his half-naked glory. The man had his clothes strewn about along with some knocked over loose furniture and medical supplies. Adrian knew that the man had the preference of sleeping fully naked and he was thankful that at least his underwear was left on this time. Trevor must have subconsciously stripped his clothing in his drunken state while he made himself comfortable in the clinic. Adrian blanched at the thought of knowing this much about the man.

 _`Disgusting,`_ Adrian thought as his nose wrinkled. _`Why do I even bother with this nonsense?`_

Adrian felt like a sensitive nerve on his temple was going to pop. This level of stress this early in the morning was not the definition of rest he was promised. Hearing a choked snore from the offending creature and a disgustingly prolonged release of rancid flatulence, Adrian grit his teeth and tightened his hold on the divider.

_`I’m going to kill you, Belmont.'_

Resisting the temptation to throw the divider itself at the man, Adrian schooled his expression. He was better than this, he thought as he messily emptied a bottle of ethanol into a paper cup and chucked it at his best friend.

" _Ahh!!_ " Trevor bolted upright as his eyes flew open at the shock, instantly regretting it. " _Aghh!_ My eyes!"

Adrian tsk'ed. He was getting rusty. He was hoping some of it would go into Trevor's mouth.

"What the flying _fuck_ , Alucard?!" Trevor yelled with his eyes closed at the general direction he thought Adrian stood.

Adrian scowled and crossed his arms, "You come into my clinic unannounced, soil the supplies that I prepared for my patients, disturb my peaceful morning with your foul stench of cheap alcohol, sweat, and other bodily excretions that I dare not mention, and you have the _audacity_ to curse at me?!"

“Oh I’m sorry, _Your Majesty ,_ " Trevor's lip curled into a snarl, "Was my peasant stench too lowly for your glorified pity party, you fucking cunt?!”

Adrian glowered. Trevor has always found a way to get under skin. Sypha did too, in her own way. He opened his clinic a week after after officials apprehended his father. He never thought he would have allies in that fight two years ago. Trevor and Sypha came from nowhere when they fell through the ceiling of one of his father's old warehouses where he was in hiding for almost a year. They stuck with him through thick and thin after that and he always wondered what powers brought the three of them together. He was no devout himself, but his mother was. And despite spending years of believing that god was only a tool used by society to justify means to their own mortal end, through his mother he grew an appreciation for the faith's finer points - and he was grateful.

"One more word, Belmont, and I am changing the locks to this clinic," Adrian said menacingly.

Trevor used his hands to feel the area around him to make sure he didn't accidentally trip on something before getting up from the bed with eyes still closed and body still half-naked, "Oh? Is that a threat?" Trevor taunted, "You think that out of all the friends I have in this side of town, your place is my only option?"

Adrian said through gritted teeth, "I am your _only_ friend in this side of town!"

Had it not been for a soft knock on the front door, Adrian would have knocked some sense into this sorry excuse of a Belmont. "Shut up." Adrian grumbled throwing Trevor's pants back at him from the ground. "I have a patient."

Trevor gave him as much of a defiant glare as he could with his still closed eyelids but didn't say anything more. Adrian smirked to himself knowing that Trevor would never see the middle finger he held up before walking towards the door to greet his first patient of the day.

He sighed as he schooled himself. The locals didn't take to him much when he first opened. For a good half of the first year, he didn't have any patients to treat and even when he would go outside to offer his help, people would shut him out. He was the son of "Dracula", after all. The pain his father's syndicate inflicted on the country was irreversible and Adrian knew it. But he hoped, in time, despite all this hardship he would be able to make a difference and help the world as his mother would've wanted.

"Good morning," Adrian greeted as he opened the door. He was met by soft teal eyes and the sight of a familiar beauty mark. "Elena. Hello, what brings you here this early?"

She smiled kindly at him, her dark hair flowing gently past her shoulders meeting her waist. She was one of the tenants at the apartment complex down the street. He would notice her walk past his clinic at ungodly hours in the night donning different uniforms every other week or so. He assumed she job-hopped often around the area as the uniforms she wore always bore the logo of the nearby gas station, retail shop, or convenience store. Today, she was wearing a loose purple sweater under a dark gray coat.

"Good morning, doctor," she greeted. "Would you happen to have some spare bandages and ointment? I'm afraid I sprained myself quite badly last night." She pulled back her left sleeve showing him her swollen hand.

"Of course. Come inside," Adrian said as he opened the door wide enough to enter.

She wasn't a regular at his clinic, thankfully, but she visits often enough for him to be concerned about her well-being. _'It was a horribly split lip last week,'_ he thought.

"Doctor, did you get mugged last night too?" she said worriedly as she carefully picked up a small fake plant from the floor and placed it back on the table in the waiting area. She looked concerned as she observed the various throw pillows, ornaments, and medical supplies strewn about.

"Apologies for the mess," Adrian sighed, walking past her. He picked up a stack of sanitary napkins and a few ornaments from the floor and placed them on one of the spare office tables to make a clear path for her towards the examination table. "A _rat_ just paid me a surprise visit last night and forgot his manners."

Trevor grunted from the other side of the dividers but otherwise said nothing. Elena nodded at him slowly, visibly uncomfortable with the thought of another man being present in the room.

This was also another detail Adrian noticed about her. She was cautious, but rightly so given the neighborhood they both lived in. In one of her first check-ups with him, she would visibly flinch each time his hand reached for her face to inspect her black eye. She wouldn't move away from his touch when it came but her reaction was still noticeable. "Don't worry. I don't bite," he had said to her then with a close-lipped smile. He was aware that his canines were longer and sharper than most, something he inherited from his father, and that they weren't the best asset to show when trying to make himself look non-threatening. She smiled apologetically at him, "I'm sure you don't, doctor."

"It's fine, Elena. He's a friend." Adrian gripped at the back of his office chair harder than he should have to help him look as convincing as possible to her as he remembered the fistfight that almost happened just a few minutes ago. "He's resting right now and won't likely be up and about until midday."

She gave him a dubious smile but gingerly took off her coat anyway and made her way to the examination table. Satisfied that she was making herself comfortable, Adrian turned on the thermos to heat some water while he fished around his medicine cabinet for supplies. "How's the pain? Did you try moving your hand around at all today?"

Elena hummed, "It's not too bad. Just a dull ache. I put an ice pack on it and that seemed to help."

Adrian walked over to where she was, depositing the supplies he prepared on the table before gesturing to her hand. "May I?" he asked.

Elena nodded and allowed him to cradle her swollen hand in his much larger one. Taking a closer look at her injury, he was relieved to see that it wasn't an injury that warranted a surgery. There weren't any cuts and signs of infection and it seems like the angulation of her bones weren't too severe. But still, this was the kind of fracture you get in fistfights. Where was she last night?

"You asked if I was "mugged too"," he said as he looked up at her her. "Are you alright, Elena?"

Laughing lightly, Elena smiled, "Are you always this interested in your patients' personal business, doctor?"

She would deflect his questions when it came to her personal life. It had always been that way since she started coming to the clinic. She kept him at a distance, and Adrian could understand why. It was dangerous to let people in so close. _`_ _You never know who will end up hurting you_ _,'_ he thought grimly.

"No," he smiled back at her before preparing to position a splint around her arm. "But I would like you to visit me less. It means you're keeping yourself out of trouble."

"Or dead," she replied.

A comment like that can often pass as just a harmless joke, but something didn't feel right to Adrian. There was a finality in her tone, as if she knew it was a very real possibility. Shaking his head, Adrian hummed, "Let's hope that's not the case."

He didn't want to dwell on that thought any further. People suffered and sometimes, people caused their own pain. He can't help everybody. Worrying about something he cannot and could not control would only bring him to ruin once again.

"Why?" Elena teased, oblivious to his plight, "Will you miss having me around?"

Adrian had to chuckle at that. She was always so soft-spoken but it surprised him whenever she decided to be forward with him. Other than Trevor and Sypha, and some of the elderly in his neighborhood, and the children, not many people would be so upfront with him. _`Then again,`_ Adrian thought, _`That did turn out to be a longer list of people than I expected.`_

"I might," he teased back, gently pulling her closer to him, "I do quite enjoy your company."

Elena flushed. It was a good color on her, Adrian thought. He knew she would eventually feel uncomfortable given their close proximity so he took a step back, already finished with his treatment.

"Thankfully your fractures aren't severe and they should heal in twelve weeks or less," he instructed, "But I'd like you to come see me at least once a week starting next week so we can keep an eye on it and make sure it heals properly. Would that be doable for you?"

Elena took a few seconds to recover from the shock and smiled at him sheepishly, "Y-yes, doctor. I'll make time."

Adrian smiled. "Would you like some tea?" he gestured towards the thermos that clicked off some time ago, "I'm afraid the water would have turned lukewarm by now but it shouldn't have gotten too cold."

She shook her head and moved to stand, "No, thank you. Although it's very kind of you to ask." She slowly flexed her arm, getting used to the pressure and restricted movement.

"It's not too tight, is it?" Adrian asked.

"Not at all," she smiled gently at him, "It's perfect. Thank you, doctor."

Elena moved towards the doorway, Adrian following behind her. "I have to prepare for an early shift this afternoon - have to cover for a coworker." she explained.

He noticed that she had left out the specifics but chose not to comment on it. "Alright, though I would insist that you don't stress yourself," Adrian said as he helped her put on her coat despite her initial refusal, "If not for your fractured hand then at least for your next cup of tea. Would hate for your next doctor's visit to be at the emergency room instead."

"You have a strange sense of humor," Elena laughed, already halfway out the door. "I look forward to my next visit with you then. Have a good day, doctor. And thank you."

The door shut with a soft click as she left. Adrian's smile faded as he remembered the finality in her voice when she proposed death to be a valid reason for her potential absence next week. He had felt this before; the desire to worry, to give a damn. Ever since the incident four months ago, he didn't want to make himself vulnerable again. Adrian's clenched his fist as he bore holes through the door, recalling their hopeful smiles, their shared laughs, and the bitter taste of their betrayal.

"I didn't know you had a girlfriend," Trevor interrupted while he stuck his head out from the gap in between the dividers.

Snapping out of his stupor, Adrian grit his teeth, "I am calling Sypha."

"You are not calling Sypha."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm worried that I might've written them out of character. Please let me know what you think!  
> P.S. Trevor's tease was inspired by the first commenter's suggestion in Chapter 1. I might take it further in future chapters but we'll see. ;)


	3. Lonely Together

The moon was fuller and brighter tonight, Adrian thought. He was nursing a glass of white wine while reading through a few pages of _Dante’s Inferno_ on paperback. It was a haunting piece but he enjoyed it nonetheless. His father always had a flair for contradictions. A man of science but an avid enthusiast of the occult; practical and driven by logic yet just as easily consumed by his rage and emotion. Adrian sighed.

He missed them, his mother and father. They were the only family he’s ever known. With his mother dead and his father driven to madness, he couldn’t help but feel just hopelessly alone.

The idea of being responsible for his father’s sentence; _it broke him_. What kind of son was he, to betray his father, to give up on his only living kin.

Adrian rolled his head back against the ornate armchair he sat on, resting his wine on the windowsill. He hated it when his mind spirals down like this. He signed. “What’s done is done,” he said to himself with a lot less conviction than he intended.

All he wanted now was peace. To live quietly and maybe help those who need it, as his mother once did, but even that still left him empty. If he had a choice in the matter, he would sleep forever. Adrian couldn’t help but chuckle to himself at the thought.

Sypha watched him like a hawk for a week after he shared this with her and Trevor. “I’m not having you go suicidal,” she said with ferocity. Her and Trevor basically moved into the then empty clinic below his apartment to keep an eye on him before leaving for the exchange program she enrolled in; Trevor wanted to tag along just because.

He was fortunate to have such friends. _`I would have gone through with it if not for them,`_ Adrian thought bitterly, lightly touching the shallow scars on his wrists. They kept him afloat. Content, to some degree -- but not alive. Not _happy_.

“Is this how tonight is going to be?” Adrian sighed, picking up his wine glass and refilling it with the bottle he had on the counter. “A glorified pity party, he said.” He let out a small, bitter laugh and took a swing.

Head buzzing, Adrian had to blink a few times. _`Shouldn't have done that,`_ he thought.

 _Tap, Tap, Tap,_ he heard from the windowsill.

Furrowing his brow Adrian willed his eyes to focus on the wine bottle in front of him. _`Odd. I'm sure the I haven't refilled the bird feeder yet.`_ He shrugged before pouring himself another glass.

"Doctor Țepeș," he heard mutedly.

 _`And I'm definitely sure that the city birds haven't evolved overnight,`_ Adrian turned to check the bird feeder he attached by the window he was looking out from and almost dropped his glass of wine.

Standing precariously with one foot on the ledge outside his window was Elena.

"My god," Adrian placed his wine glass back on the counter and hurriedly drew the curtains so he could open the windows. "Elena, what the fuck?" Adrian said to her in confusion while helping her step inside.

"Close the window, quick!" she gasped frantically as she backed away from the windows.

Adrian did as she was told without question.

Elena slid to the floor, leaning against the counter. She was breathing hard, eyes still dilated from the adrenaline coursing through her.

When he was done with the window, Adrian took a second to look look at her. She was wearing the uniform of the convenience store a few blocks away from his apartment. _`Another job,`_ he thought. He also noticed that her splint was undone, he could already see her hand swelling up again.

Taking a deep breath, he pinched the bridge of his nose. Adrian decided against interrogating the woman immediately and slowly walked around her to get a glass of water instead.

Adrian's apartment was large as it took up the entire third floor of the building; it was where he and his parents would stay while they were in the city. His father owned many buildings, both commercial and residential, most of them often serving a dual purpose. This building was no different. The clinic below used to be his mother's before she died but after she was gone, the entire building was abandoned save for the storage rooms at the back that later on served a more... malicious purpose.

She was nursing her swollen hand when he came around and sat on the floor across from her. "Here." He gently slid the glass towards her good hand.

Elena looked up at him with her wide teal eyes. She was shaking, Adrian noticed. Her lips were pale and the circles under her eyes looked deeper. What happened?

"C-Can you please turn off the lights?" she finally said.

Adrian paused. There was no denying he was trying to decide if she was a threat or not. Elena seemed to notice this and somehow... understood?

She slowly unfurled herself, now sitting cross-legged in front of Adrian. She showed him her hands and she emptied her pockets, a few receipts, keys, and a crumpled candy wrapper falling out. She had no outer layer to shed and so she attempted to take off her shoes with the one good hand she had.

Adrian understood what she wanted to tell him. She wasn't a threat. Realizing that this was her intent, he smiled. Just as she was about to take off her other shoe, Adrian stood and turned off the table lamp he had left on by the arm chair he sat in earlier.

The living room was dark now with only the soft glow from the streetlights below seeping through the windows. Adrian sat back down across Elena and offered her a faint smile.

She nodded to him in thanks as she took the glass of water and pressed it against her lips. Adrian watched her take small sips before fully consuming its content.

He did a slow exhale, rolling his head back a second time tonight but against the living room couch. _`Why do I always end up babysitting?`_ he thought with ire. Looking back at his past interactions with Elena - and the many check ups he'd done on her - he had eventually drawn the conclusion that she was either a victim of domestic abuse or just an unlucky denizen who keeps getting into trouble. Considering the severity of her injuries when she first came to him, though, and her secretive nature, he guessed it was the former.

He moved to look at her again and noticed she was staring right back at him. Just as curious. But with a gaze that has always been oh so gentle.

Adrian had always liked her eyes. Their color, her lashes. They looked tired most of the time but there was a vibrancy in them that he would always look forward to seeing whenever she was in a teasing mood. He wondered, if Elena wasn't such a lonely girl, would she have been a lovely one?

He caught himself. Adrian blinked. Lonely. Why did he choose that word to describe her? He didn't know her enough to think she was lonely. But did he really? He would catch her walking home alone, without fail, in the dead hours of nights when decides to spend them in his clinic doing research. She would shy away from touch, even from the older patients whom she was relatively friendly with. She never stayed long in the clinic either, and always excused herself when she feels the conversations have gotten too personal.

"I apologize for asking for a fourth favor from you in the last twenty-four hours doctor, but," Elena said softly at him, "but would you kindly help me put my splint back in place?"

Adrian shook his head slowly as if the movement dismissed the thoughts he had about the frail young woman in front of him. "Of course," he muttered.

Thankfully he had enough supplies in the room to be able to get back to her within a few minutes. He was swift with his actions, not letting touches linger for longer than necessary. After fastening the final layer of bandages, he sat back in his place across from her.

"Elena," Adrian started. "Do you know who I am?"

It was Elena's turn to pause. Adrian didn't know why he felt like asking her that question. Perhaps, he wanted to know if she knew who she shared the room with. Maybe, he wanted to know if she really did want to be so vulnerable in front of him.

"Yes." She replied, "You're Alucard, the man responsible for Dracula's arrest."

Adrian grunted. The opposite of _him_. One who opposed Dracula. He hated that nickname.

"But you are also kind Doctor Țepeș," Elena continued as she patted her splint gently, "the man who helps me when I'm hurt." She smiled at him; Adrian feeling the gratitude and respect in her gaze, "So does it really matter who you were in your past life?"

Adrian felt heat creep up from his neck to his cheeks and he was sure it wasn't because of the wine. The look of admiration on her face was not something he expected in this situation, especially from her. "No," he coughed, "I supposed it doesn't."

Elena hummed and didn't say anything after that.

They both sat in a comfortable silence for a while; one stealing a curious glance at the other. When their gazes would meet, Adrian felt no judgement and, he'd like to think, Elena felt no fear. They would smile at each other gently.

After a while, Adrian noticed that Elena had extended her foot close enough to his own. She looked relaxed and smiled at him when she caught him noticing her. She wiggled her toes lightly as she moved them a few inches towards his own. Adrian let a chuckle escape him, letting his big toe gently bump against hers. She let out a breath and stacked her toe on top of his. Humored, Adrian wiggled his toe out from underneath hers and stepped it on top of hers instead.

It was a few minutes of light toe fighting, even getting a little competitive for a few rounds.

Their match ended after a while, with Elena as the victor. She grinned at him and he rolled his eyes at her, earning him a small laugh.

Leading back, she whispered, "Thank you.” and Adrian knew it wasn't because he let her win in their tiny competition. He smiled.

"You're welcome," he said.

With their toes still intertwined, it was quiet between them once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heads up! I changed some tiny details in Chapters 1 and 2 to fit the narrative of this chapter but nothing you need to go back for.


End file.
